The first Preview DVD couldn't be used in this research project as it was mainly about the new Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince film.
However, the second Preview DVD had Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (my main focus film) Behind the Magic. Here are some of the notes I made whilst watching the DVD.
Quote from David Yates (Director):
The film is about a team of warriors that forge together to fight the dark evil forces.
This draws upon the main event of an action spectacular as the climax is reached at the end of the film with the Good vs Evil. This seems to be the director's key focus.
Normally when you visit a film studio, there will be 3, 4 or even 5 films in production at the same time. This is what makes the Harry potter studio so unique, it is the only film being made here. This place is vast.
This quote seems to suggest that the Harry Potter franchise is huge and is treated with the greatest amount of respect. The DVD took you around the studios to have a peek at the different departments working on the Harry Potter film.
Quote from David Heyman (Producer)
With Privet Drive: We filmed on the Privet Drive's actual location on the first Harry Potter film, but filming wan't finished. So on the second day of filming, the residents were asking for more money because we were 'Harry Potter'. Therefore, it was cheaper to build our own Privet Drive for the film, enabling us to film as many times as we want.
The Harry Potter sets seem to be the driving force of the fantasy blockbuster and this DVD highlights to me that there is a lot of work, which goes into the mise en scene. This is a specific point, which I could explore later in this research project. As the set description continues:
It is reassuring to see the sets we got to know so well: Dumbledore's office, the Great Hall and the Gryffindor Common room in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. These specific sets never get cleared away. They are always here, even when they are not filming.
In the Room of Requirement, it is the hottest place on Earth due to the mirrors and fireplaces. It took five special effects artists three months to remove the cast's reflections in the mirrors within each the shots.
The Ministry of Magic set is the largest that has ever been built for the Harry Potter films. You could fit 50 double decker buses in here. The set took twenty-two weeks to build and appears in the film for less than ten minutes. In fact, the grand design of the Victorian London Underground was used as inspiration for the Ministry of Magic set.
The question is why the huge sets? Why can't the sets just be simple such as a simple hall or house? Does the audience get some sort of thrill of seeing a huge landscape?
Quote from David Yates:
It's always fun to blow things up. Everyone comes to watch!
This seems to answer my question from the director himself, but I need to explore the element of mise en scene within fantasy films.
Also, the use of technology was talked about as well.
Quote from Tim Burke (Visual Effects Supervisor):
We have pushed technology with the creation of the character Gawp as he is the closest Human CGI form as we hired an actor to make Gawp's facial expressions and the computer made analysis of the muscle use in the actor's face.
The Hall of Prophecy was a complete CGI environment for the actors because the set design could never be physically built so a green screen was used.
Finally, for the hard core geeky Harry Potter fans, the wand duelling was heavily focused upon as a fighting coach and a choreographer made sure the Good vs Evil climax was to a high standard. There were specific movements for the actors to learn whilst using their wands. They had to learn five 'attack' and 'defence' body movements each designated to a certain spell.
Paul Harris (Choreographer):
I wanted the wand duelling to be violent and serious. It was filled with energy and adrenaline for the actors and the audience as well.
Helena Bonham Carter ( plays Bellatrix Lestrange):
Wand duelling is really serious and you have to look like you mean it when you shout your spell.
The whole DVD was an amazing resource to use in this coursework as it took me behind the scenes of my focus film and made me ask questions about the mise en scene within the fantasy genre.
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